The Veep debate: What we know and who they are

An officer walks his dog through the debate hall at Longwood University during preparations for the vice-presidential debate in Virginia. Photo / AP

THE US VICE-PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE

Time: 2pmWhere: At Longwood University in Farmville, Virginia.Moderator: Elaine Quijano of CBS NewsFormat: It will be divided into nine segments of about 10 minutes each. After the moderator asks a question, each candidate will have two minutes to respond, with the moderator using the remaining time for a deeper discussion.

THE CANDIDATES

TIM KAINE

Senator Tim Kaine. Photo / AP

Age: 58Party: DemocratExperience and role: A Senator from Virginia, Kaine has loads of experience winning elections and leading as a former Governor of the state, Mayor of Richmond and chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Politico reports that Kaine has raised at least US$27 million in direct fundraising. He has brought an easygoing manner to the top team.Known for: Kaine is best known to a NZ audience as the guy who made Dad jokes about Donald Trump at the Democratic National Convention. He's not an orator with the charisma to fill huge stadiums. In news clips he looks comfortable at small rallies and pressing the flesh. There's the no-frills, genial manner of a mid-level politician rather than rising star. Clips on the web show Kaine playing the harmonica. He is against abortion but has voted for abortion rights. He is also opposed to the death penalty but has approved executions. He has supported free trade which is a contentious issue with the Democrats.Background: He was born in St Paul, Minnesota, and grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. He has an economics degree and is a Harvard-educated lawyer. Kaine learned Spanish during a year as a Jesuit missionary in Honduras 30 years ago. As a lawyer in Richmond, Kaine focused on housing law and represented clients who had been racially discriminated against. Family: His father had an ironworking shop. He met his wife Anne Holton, the daughter of a Republican Virginia governor, at Harvard. Holton has since been a judge and state secretary of education. As a schoolgirl she attended a historically all-black public school, and the couple sent their three children to public schools. They attend a mostly African American Catholic church in Richmond.

MIKE PENCE

Governor Mike Pence. Photo / AP

Age: 57Party: RepublicanExperience and role: The Indiana Governor is Trump's consigliere to his disgruntled party in Congress. Politico says Pence has also been "wooing Trump-resistant donors" and has raised US$10 million. With the added experience of 12 years on Capitol Hill, Pence is seen by himself and others as being a hugely influential figure, should Trump win. Politico reports he has said that Dick Cheney - the notoriously powerful Vice-President to George W. Bush - would be his role model, while others see him as a future liaison man with Republicans in Congress. "He'll be a great coach for Trump," one senator told Politico. Pence has been Governor for three years. Known for: Being calm, steady and an evangelical Christian conservative on social issues. Indiana has strict abortion laws. Pence signed a now amended bill that extended legal protections to business owners who did not want to participate in same-sex weddings. He stands out as very different in style among Trump's generally brash group of advisers such as Chris Christie and Rudy Giuliani and is his own man. He has backed free trade and opposed Trump's policy to ban Muslims from entering the US. Should Trump fail, Pence will probably have enhanced his prospects for 2020. Background: From a family of Irish Catholic Democrats, Pence has history and law degrees. He had careers as a lawyer and then a talk radio host before becoming a congressman. Family: Son of a war vet who ran service stations. Pence and his wife Karen, like Kaine and his wife, have three children and again like the Kaines, one of them is a serving Marine.